Football: Wissam Ben Yedder to be tried on October 15th for sexual assault in particular

Le joueur n'a plus de club depuis son départ de Monaco. MAXPPP – Cyril Dodergny

Already prosecuted for rape in another case, the former Monaco player was arrested in Cap d'Ail, just next to the Principality, following a complaint filed by a young woman in her twenties accusing him of sexual assault on Friday, September 6.

The former captain of AS Monaco Wissam Ben Yedder, already prosecuted for rape in another case, will be tried on October 15 in Nice for sexual assault while intoxicated and refusal to comply, we learned Monday from the prosecutor's office. The 34-year-old French striker, who left the Monaco club at the end of last season when his contract expired, was arrested in Cap d'Ail, just next to the Principality, “driving his vehicle on the night of Friday to Saturday” following a complaint filed by a young woman in her twenties accusing him of sexual assault earlier in the evening, Nice public prosecutor Damien Martinelli explained to AFP, confirming information from L'Equipe.

In a state of obvious drunkenness

The player, Monaco's second-highest scorer in history but without a club at this stage, was released from police custody on Sunday with a summons to be tried in mid-October by the criminal court for “sexual assault while clearly intoxicated, refusal to comply and driving under the influence of alcohol”. In the meantime, a psychological assessment of the victim must be established, the prosecutor added. While awaiting trial, Wissam Ben Yedder has been placed under judicial supervision.

The prosecution had requested his placement in pretrial detention and has therefore appealed this decision. According to Damien Martinelli, who points out that the suspect is already under judicial supervision for rape, pretrial detention would make it possible to "avoid any risk of pressure on the victim or witnesses" and "prevent the repetition of the facts". In the summer of 2023, he had been indicted for "rape, attempted rape and sexual assault" in another case and had already been placed under judicial supervision, after having paid a bail of 900,000 euros.

Convicted of tax fraud

Ben Yedder made his debut in professional football at Toulouse before joining the Spanish club FC Seville in 2016, where he confirmed his potential. Back in France in 2019, under the colours of AS Monaco, he was selected 19 times in the French team and his last selection with the Blues dates back to June 2022. In 2023, he was also sentenced by the court of Seville (southern Spain) to six months in prison suspended and a fine of 133,798.70 euros for tax fraud.